THE GRUDGE: Ratchet's Encounter
by TheGrudge154
Summary: When assigned on a mission to Earth, Ratchet soon finds himself in a certain abandoned house. But soon after he enters, he soon feels something isn't right and that someone or something is watching him.
1. Chapter 1: Every Curse Has A Beginning

Please keep in mind this is my first ever fanfic when reviewing. I will be adding more chapters as the story progresses. So enjoy what happens when Ratchet meets a force that never forgives and never forgets...

**THE GRUDGE: Every Curse has a beginning...**

The computer on the Aphelion began to bleep as the ship glided through space towards the planet. It was known as Earth and had been said to have a very intelligent race called humans. They weren't as advanced as any other of the races this ship had been to, but they had begun to start space travel. Ratchet pressed a few buttons and the ship began to descend into the atmosphere. The Lombax sighed. His ears drooped slightly and his face had a very sad expression. It had been just a few days since Clank had been taken by the Zoni to God knows where. He had been very sad, even depressed, since this event. He hadn't eaten or slept very well. This mission was only something to take his mind off it. He didn't think it would work that well, but maybe it would. He sighed again as the ship took a sharp turn and began to go down towards a region of the planet known as "Tokyo". Hopefully, they would be accepting to Ratchet. It was reported this planet hadn't had any alien activity before. Ratchet pushed forward on the control stick as the Aphelion passed through the clouds.

After the ship had landed, Ratchet jumped out of the cockpit. It seemed to be an alright place. It was clearly urbanised. He had landed in a small rural area. He began to make his way towards the city. He didn't think he'd need any weapons so he left them in the Aphelion.

"Now, where to go?" he muttered to himself. He tried to stay out of the public eye. Ratchet didn't exactly want himself to get hunted. He dashed round a corner into a secluded street. He wiped his brow. It was very hot with all these people around. Most of the planets he'd been to where just jungle places with the odd droid factory. So many people... Ratchet continued up the street. There was only one house that was visible. The others could be behind trees or something, but something told Ratchet to go to this house. He didn't really know why, but he began to open the gate to this house. It looked extremely old. Maybe abandoned? No, it couldn't have been. He could see a light in the upstairs room. He walked towards the door. But he didn't notice the figure staring at him through the window...

Ratchet knocked on the door. No answer. He pushed it open slightly.

"Hello?" His ears twitched as a cold breeze suddenly came through the house.

"That's weird.." he thought to himself. But he shook his head. There was nothing to worry about. It was probably just a draft. Ratchet noticed the shoes on the floor. Maybe it was customary to take them off when in a house?

"I better respect their traditions" he thought to himself. He walked in. It was very cold in here. He wasn't used to it. Ratchet had come from Veldin, a very hot place. Just thinking of Veldin reminded him of Clank...

He walked in to the sitting room. It was terrible! The floor was covered in all kinds of food packets, boxes and loads of litter.

"They need a cleaner" he said out loud. Ratchet was hoping the people were home. This mission was over 3 days long, so he'd need somewhere to stay.

Suddenly, a small bang was heard as Ratchet spun around. Nothing there. He shivered. Why was it so cold? He went back into the hallway to turn on the heating. He walked past the mirror. He didn't notice the person staring back at him through the glass. Ratchet turned to face the mirror. Something had looked at him... He was actually quite scared now. Something very strange was going on in this house.

Suddenly, a loud harsh croaking was heard. Ratchet froze. His face was an expression if sheer dread as he slowly turned round towards the stairs. A pale white hand was moving towards the first step. It was contorted and writhing as it grabbed the step. Ratchet cried out in fear as he ran towards the door. Whatever was going on, something was coming for him.

Ratchet had run into the street. He had never been scared by anything before, not even the Beast of Jasudia, but something had gone after him in that house and he didn't know what. He needed to get to somehwere safe. He had run out into the worst storm he'd ever seen. Rain was pouring down on him. He curled himself up near the corner of a fence, shivering. He saw 2 figures coming towards him. They were humans. A man and a woman. They came over and began to speak to him.

"Are you OK, little one?"

"Come with us" the other said "you will be safe now"

Ratchet just looked back at them. He tried to speak, but the shock of the previous events prevented him from doing so. They took his hand and walked with him to another house.

The humans were very kind to him. They gave him food and water and even offered for him to stay with them. Ratchet was still shivering. It was as if the cold of that house never left him. He finally plucked up the courage to speak.

"I..If you've n..never seen a L...Lombax before..then w..why are you h..helping m..me?"

"Dear child" the woman spoke "no matter where anybody comes from, whether it's on this planet or not, we will welcome and help them as best we can"

"Thank y..you" he replied. "Please...w..what is that p..place? W..What happened in th..that house?"

The man and woman looked at each other. The man nodded. The woman sat besides Ratchet.

"I must say that what happened in that house was a terrible dreadful event. Not many people ask about it. But as you ventured in there, you would probably like to know, yes?"

"Y...Yes. What h..happened?"

"Well, it must have been at least 3 years ago. There used to be a family in that house. The Saeki family. I have a picture here, from their son's brithday" she held up a photo frame, pointing to each person in turn. "Takeo, the husband. Kayako the mother and their young son Toshio. They were a very happy family. Until Takeo read Kayako's diary the night after Toshio turned 8. She had wrote about an old school love she had met again in Tokyo. But Takeo took it as evidence that Kayako was having an affair! Takeo had been known to get very angry, very easily. But this caused him to do something terrible, even unspeakable. He snapped Kayako's neck and then killed Toshio! It was terrible. The house was abandoned after that. But that's not the end of it. They say that Kayako and Toshio still remain in that house as ghosts. If anyone enters that house, they will find you. Folks say the last thing you hear, if you've been in that house, is a death rattle made by Kayako, a croaking made as a last gasp of air is made. The Ju-On curse..."

Ratchet shivered again. The man got him a blanket as she continued. The woman smiled at him and put a hand on his shoulder.  
"But it's just a rumor. No-one really has seen a ghost of Kayako or Toshio for that matter. There's nothing to worry about. Now get some rest child. You deserve it"

They walked out of the room and switched the light off. Ratchet was laid in the bed they had made for him. He really appreciated these people's kindness. But what the woman had said bothered him. The Ju-On curse? It couldn't be real...could it?

Clank was still flying with the Zoni in a dream like state. He wondered where Ratchet was but he didn't really care. He was too dreamy to care. The Zoni continued to fly with him. They suddenly dipped as they settled down on a circular metal fragment, large enough for them all to stand on. Clank suddenly became alert as he realised what had happened.

"What's going on? Where's Ratchet?"

"Look.." was the Zoni's reply.

Clank's vision was suddenly replaced by an image of Ratchet. He was in a dark place, begging for mercy or so it seemed. The image changed to reveal Ratchet falling away from Clank, screaming out his name with tears streaming down his face. It looked like he knew something bad was going to happen to him...it changed again to show Ratchet on the floor completely still, blood flowing from his head. Ratchet appeared to be alone...and the last image was a pale white face with long black hair, it's mouth open making a horrific croaking sound. Clank shook his head as his vision returned. Had he seen the future? Was Ratchet going to die? He had to help him!

"Please let me get to him before it's too late!"

"It's dangerous. We can't let you, sire"

Crank scowled in frustraton. Ratchet was going to die and he couldn't do anything to stop it...

The next day, Ratchet was eating breakfast with the couple who had found him. He hadn't eaten a hot breakfast like this is months! His tail swished from side to side as he ate. The couple smiled at him. They must've seen him as some cat that could walk and talk. Ratchet would prefer they use Lombax if they did mention what he looked like. Ratchet put down his knife and fork for a minute. He wiped his mouth with a hankerchief.

"Excuse us for a minute Ratchet, we need to go upstairs for a minute. Will you be alright on your own?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thank you again for looking after me"

"It's not a problem at all" They walked off down the hall. Ratchet started to eat again. He didn't know why this was so good. He was happy because..because it felt like he had a family. Something which he had never truly had. He sighed. Ratchet knew Clank would've loved to be here.

Suddenly a piercing scream shook the house from up the stairs. Ratchet gasped. What had happened? Something bad? Maybe they... He didn't want anything to happen to his new friends. He dashed upwards.

"Please, be alright!" he thought. He stopped at the top step.. Blood was seeping out from under the door where the couple were. Ratchet bit his lip as he slowly went towards the door. He shut his eyes as he turned the handle and swung open the door. He screamed in horror at what he saw. The couple were on the floor in a pool of blood. The man had been stabbed 3 times in the chest and the woman appeared to have been strangled. Ratchet stood there, trying to take in what he was seeing, before finally sinking to the floor crying once again. What was going on? And more importantly, why? He cried for these innocent people, dead on the floor in front of his own eyes.

"W..Why?2 he managed to say in between sobs. Suddenly, a croaking came from the bathroom. He looked up with his teared up eyes. He slowly came towards the door. It suddenly swung open by itself to reveal Kayako Saeki, standing in the threshold. Ratchet fell backwards onto the floor. Kayako was coming towards him, moaning her death rattle and cracking her broken neck. The white face, the long dark hair and the black rings around the eyes...Ratchet was petrified. She came closer almost touching him. Ratchet shut his eyes and waited for the inevitable. The croaking suddenly stopped. Ratchet opened an eye. She was gone. Ratchet could breath again. He wished Clank was here so badly now. He'd be able to cope, he'd be able to survive. But without him, Ratchet didn't know what to do. He quickly got a hold of himself. He had to go to the police. He would avenge these two people. They had cared for him, and taken him in, only to be killed by a curse which had nothing to do with them. It might not even have been a curse, just someone pulling a sick joke. Nonetheless, Ratchet ran out of the door and towards, where he thought, the police station was.

Surprisingly enough, Ratchet hadn't been attacked by anybody in the streets. After all it was strange for them to see a Lombax on their planet. He stopped, unsure of where to go. A huge crowd was pushing and shoving him. He gasped as he noticed Kayako in the crowd. He ran again. He had to get away. Ratchet knew she would catch him if he didn't get away in time. He was running towards a bridge that was being constructed but hadn't been finished yet. He ran to the edge of the railing. It was a long way down. He guessed it must be at least 100ft. Ratchet turned and ran towards the small building near the side. It appeared to go all the way down to the bottom of the bridge. He was about to enter when he noticed a small, pale white boy in the corner. Ratchet froze.

"W..Who are you?" he asked nervously.

The boy responded with a scream that sounded like a cross between a human and a cat. Ratchet winced. His ears were very sensitive. It was agony to hear that sound. Just at that moment, as he opened his eyes again to look, a black cat ran towards the boy who then picked it up. Ratchet blinked and the boy was gone. That must've been Toshio. He checked for anyone else on the stairs. Ratchet realised. It was all clear. The curse was real. They would not stop until they caught and...he gasped at the thought of death. Despite the intense sensation of dread, he began to race down the stairs. He had to get away.

Clank was still protesting against the Zoni.

"You don't understand, Ratchet will die if I don't help him!"

"We cannot send you there..." they replied.

"Why?" asked Clank

"We cannot teleport you to help him"

"Please, do it! I can't just stay here and do nothing. Why did you bring me here anyway?"

"That will be revealed in due course..."

Ratchet leant against the rail to catch his breath. How many stairs where there? They seemed to go on forever. Ratchet turned only to see Kayako's face staring back at him, croaking her death rattle. Ratchet cried out in shock and turned. He then began to run down the stairs again. Ratchet looked back. The floors above him were shutting their lights off after they had passed it. She was following him. Ratchet tried to keep going, but his legs couldn't cope. He made a mistake with his footing and fell forwards. His leg seared in pain. He must've broken his ankle. He cried out in agony. What ever was chasing him seemed to respond, as the lights above him went out faster and faster. He began to grab the stairs, seeing if he could crawl down them. It was extremely painful. With every pull, he winced and tears fell to the floor. He'd never broken a bone before, nanotech usually helped before that happened. But there was none. No nanotech, no help, nothing. He had to keep going. Just like Kayako did trying to escape her husband in that house, he began to crawl down the stairs screaming in agony. The lights above him were still getting put out one by one. The croaking was getting louder. She was getting nearer. Ratchet tried to crawl as fast as he could, but he was just too slow. He saw Kayako's deathly white hand come round the corner. She appeared moaning her death rattle whilst crawling down the stairs unaturaly fast. Ratchet tried to grab the next stair, but then a hand grabbed him by his damaged leg. He screamed. Kayako began to crawl over his body. She stood up with her head still jerking about. She picked him up with one hand. The light above them suddenly switched off leaving them in darkness. Ratchet begged at her

"Please..let me go! I'm sorry...please..."

Ratchet gazed into her face. The eyes. Un-emotional and ghostly. She hung him over the rail. He knew this was it. All that adventuring, just to be killed here. Kayako moaned her death rattle once more before letting go of him. He screamed in fear, tears streaming down his face, as he fell and fell and fell until suddenly...SMACK! Ratchet hit the floor, causing blood to spray out over the walls. His ribs had been crushed as well as his arms. His head was bleeding forming a pool of blood around his limp body. He tried to breath, but could only make Kayako's infamous death rattle. And the worst part? He was on his own, and no-one seemed to know...

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	2. Chapter 2: Infection

**THE GRUDGE: INFECTION**

"Someone...cough...help me" Ratchet managed to croak. He couldn't move. She had thrown him down at least 50 ft. The nearby door was open. He could get away, but his arms had been smashed. He couldn't exactly crawl up and get away. He closed his eyes. He felt so sleepy...

Suddenly the sound of what he thought was a Gyro Cycle blared out. A Gyro Cycle? On Earth? It could be someone from the Phoenix! Ratchet croaked out

"Hey...I'm in here..."

The sound began to get louder. They may have heard him! Ratchet tried to speak again, but all he could do was croak. He was so tired. The Gyro Cycle stopped outside the door. Ratchet couldn't tell who was on it, but whoever it was, he/she was coming to him. Ratchet felt himself get picked up off the floor. He tried to scream out in pain because of his broken limbs, but he didn't have the energy. He heard the person speak. He'd recognize the lisped, geekey voice anywhere.

"Al to Phoenix. I've got him. Tell Clank he's alright"

"Clank...?" Ratchet thought. He wanted to ask but he was too sleepy. He closed his eyes and let unconciousness take over him...

Ratchet began to stir. He could here the bleeping of machines. He curled his ears down. It was too loud. The fall must've made his ears more sensitive. He was on a bed at least. Someone was next to him. Short...silver, it was hard to make out. His vision was very blurred. It could be Clank...or a maintenance droid. He couldn't tell. He heard a voice.

"Hey everyone, he's waking up!"

"I hope you haven't given him too much of my Zalgo 3000 formula. If he has, I'll blame you Al! In a painful way! That stuff costs bolts!"

Well, he knew Al and Helga was there. He must have been on board the Phoenix. Was Sasha there too?

"Well Sasha will be glad to know he's OK now. I know how much she hates those meetings with the President"

Ratchet smiled. Sasha always despised having the President of the Galaxy for a father.

"I believe he will need time to adjust his vision"

Only one person had that voice. Clank!

"Clank! Where are you? Clank!"

"Ratchet, I'm here"

Ratchet bit his lower lip. To start crying now was foolish. He'd cried enough over the past few days. Too many times. But he let slip a single tear. Clank was surprised by this. He's never known Ratchet cared that much.

"As long as Clank is alright, I'll be alright" Ratchet thought to himself. But the future is never set in stone...

Over the next day or two, Ratchet began to gain back his strength. He'd begun to eat more and talking and seeing had become easier for him. It was a long, painful recovery. His limbs were still causing him agony whenever he moved. But at least he knew it wouldn't last long. Ratchet had also told everyone about her, even warned them that they should stay away from him in case she went after them, but, as with many people, no-one believed him. No-one except for Clank that is. He'd been sitting there trying to think where he'd seen this Kayako person before...

"Clank?" Ratchet said "How did you get back?"

"Well, as strange as it may seem, the Zoni actually let me come back. I don't know why they suddenly changed their minds..."

Ratchet thought that was odd too, but as long as he had come back, he didn't care how. He'd begun to think of that couple he had met whilst on Earth...he didn't even know their names. It was a tragedy. Ratchet felt these people needed something back from him, a way to repay their hospitality. He lowered his head and his ears drooped. And he did something he'd never done before. He prayed. He wasn't even religious, but he felt that this couple deserved this from him. Clank looked up.

"Ratchet, you are crying again...what's wrong?"

Ratchet wiped his eyes

"It's nothing. Goodnight..."

Ratchet turned away from Clank. Clank always thought it was sad to see his ears droop. That usually meant something was on his mind and that he didn't really want to tell anyone. Clank sighed. It was going to be harder to find out what happened than he originally anticipated.

The lights of the Starship Phoenix dimmed as night-time (according to the ship's computer, you can never tell in space) settled in. Clank had gone to another room to read. He didn't need sleep after all. Ratchet was resting in his bed. He wanted to slap his head in frustration for being a total moron, but the restraints held him back. It had been a few hours ago. Ratchet had seen her aboard the Phoenix. Just standing amognst Al and the others, staring at him. It really was a curse! If she could follow him through space, what else could she do? He had gone beserk and tried to escape the room. He didn't want a repeat of what happened on Earth. They thought he'd gone insane. Al said it was could be brain damage because of the fall. But they would say that. They couldn't see her. They hadn't gone into that house. They had tied him down to prevent him from going nuts again and...

"...for your own safety" he muttered repeating Al's words to him. "Yeah, safety my..."

The light above him crackled. He gasped. He shook his head. It was just a light after all. It crackled again. And again. It was going to go out. And if it was, then that meant...she was here, in the room.

Ratchet began to struggle against his restraints. He had to get out. He pulled up on his wrist restraints. Between the small parts where the room was actually illuminated, he saw a pale white arm grab his own arm and then disappear. He screamed

"Someone, get me out of here!"

He tore at the restraints. They finally broke off and he ran towards his door. He opened it and ran down the hallway. He looked behind him. The lights in the hallway were going out one by one. And with each flash that happened when the bulb broke, she was there walking towards him, jerking her neck...

He pounded at the door but it just wouldn't open. He turned only to be faced with the deathly white face of Kayako. She croaked loudly as she advanced towards him...

Clank suddenly looked up from his book as a piercing scream shot through the ship. It sounded like Ratchet! He ran towards Ratchet's room. He looked inside through the window. Ratchet wasn't there! His restraints had been torn to shreds and there was no evidence of him being in the room in the first place. Al quickly came up behind Clank.

"Clank! It's terrible...Hallway B-21..oh God..."

Clank dashed to the hallway. Qwark, Sasha and others were all gathering round something. Clank pushed his way through. He gasped. Ratchet was lying on the floor. He didn't appear to be harmed in anyway, apart from the large metal fragment that had gone through his chest. The floor had been stained a deep crimson. His eyes were frozen open and his face was an expression of terror. His last moments seemed to have been horrifying. Clank froze. It couldn't be happening. It may have been a malfunction to his visual systems. He hoped it was. He looked behind him. Sasha looked shellshocked.

"He tried to talk to me...but all he could do was croak back...I never want to hear that sound again..."

She walked off. She seemed more effected than anyone. Apart from Clank. He had just sunk to his knees. He didn't know what to say. Al stood next to him

"We need to take him away...excuse me..."

Clank watched as his friend was lifted up on the stretcher and a white blanket put over his face. Clank shuddered. He thought he would never see this happen...not to Ratchet. No-one spoke or did anything for the rest of the evening...

Sasha had ordered a full investigation into Ratchet's death. Until it was over, Hallway B-21 was sealed off. Al was still busy working on robotics. It was the only way to take his mind of it. Ratchet's eyes...just open, no emotion. That had scared him the most. He shook his head and got back to reconfiguring a board-displacer. He was just about to pick up his screwdriver when he heard a noise behind him. He turned. Nothing there. Al got back to work. He heard it again. A small croaking. It could have been an old water pipe, but the Phoenix was pratically brand new. He got up. It was coming from near the end of his room. Maybe the dresser? He sat down at it. Nothing here that could make any noise at all. He was about to walk away when he saw a familiar figure in the mirror. Al spun round.

"Ratchet?!"

No-one was there. Al though it must've been his mind. It had been a shock to everyone. They probably thought they could see him too the odd time. He was walking back to his robotics equipment when he heard it again. This was getting absurd now. He now knew it was coming from his wardrobe. He walked towards it. Could it be that this Kayako Ratchet had talked about was real?

"Preposterous!" he thought as he opened the door. His eyes bulged, his jaw dropped and then he screamed in horror. It was Ratchet! But not like he had seen him before. His fur had become pale, almost white. His eyes had lost the green hue of his irises and he had his mouth open, croaking the last sound he made, his death rattle.. His chest was still stained with blood. His ears were drooped down. Ratchet had changed, and in a bad way. Ratchet began to walk forwards slowly, cracking his neck as Al tried to run, but Ratchet grabbed him, still croaking, and pulled him into the wardrobe. The door slammed shut on an empty room...

The next morning, Al couldn't be found anywhere. They had checked all the places he had been in the last 24 hours and no sign of him. He had just vanished. Clank was looking through Ratchet's old things, looking for any clue as to what happened. He noticed an old, worn out diary. Ratchet never kept a diary. At least not to Clank's knowledge. Who did it belong to? He opened it. It was in another language. Definitely not Ratchet's. Luckily, Clank knew at least 7000 different languages, including Japanese. He read the last entry from it:

_Dear Diary,_

_I saw him again today! Peter Kirk. I haven't seen him since high school. I remember I used to love him. But...I'm worried about my feelings now...I think I'm in love again. I wouldn't dream of cheating on my dear Takeo, but sometimes feelings can become too strong. That's what I'm afraid of. But that won't happen. I love Takeo dearly, but I..._

_Anyway, Toshio turned 8 yesterday. I was so proud, he was very happy with the gifts we got him. Now he never puts down that cat. Mar can be a little hard to handle, but if Toshio loves him, then so will I. I'll write again tommorow_

_Kayako Saeki_

Kayako? She did exist! Ratchet had been telling the truth. At least about the person. It was still highly improbably that she was now a cursed monster. Clank turned the page, the last one in the book. He gasped. It was covered in Ratchet's name, scrawled countless times over the pages. He dropped it. Something had happened to Ratchet and it involved this Kayako in some way.

Sasha was at her control desk on the bridge working out a few bugs in the diagnostic system. Because the ship was new, so many bugs had been found...she was going to crack. She sighed as she looked at her screen again. She wanted a break, or at least a warm cup of coffee. She heard the bridge's automatic doors open. She turned round to see who it was. No-one turned up. It was probably another stupid bug!

"Ugh!" she banged her head on the console. She jumped off her chair and began to head towards the stairs. She stopped as she heard something behind her. She turned around slowly. Nothing was there.

"Phew..."

She turned back round to face the stairs and immediatly froze. A gloved hand was grabbing onto the top step. It had pale, almost white fur and it jerked about trying to grab the step. She gasped. As the thing came round the corner, she couldn't believe her eyes. Ratchet, cracking his neck and moaning out his death rattle was crawling down the stairs towards her. He left a long trail of blood from the wound on his chest. She backed towards the viewscreen and leant against it. He was getting closer...

Suddenly a pair of white hands grabbed her face as she saw Kayako for the first time. Kayako pulled her into the viewscreen and she disappeared with a scream and without a trace...

Clank was worried. 2 people from the Phoenix had now disappeared. This had only started happening after Ratchet had been killed. Clank had to investigate. He'd ask Qwark to help. He was the only one left with a _bit _of knowledge. Even if it was Qwark. And if these disappearences had something to do with Ratchet, he would try his best to help and end this before another person would be taken by a force that couldn't be stopped...and wouldn't be killed.

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	3. Chapter 3: Showdown

**THE GRUDGE: SHOWDOWN**

"Captain Qwark?"

Clank was outside Qwark's house. It did seem quite run down for the place of residence of a celebrity super-hero. Clank shrugged. He tried to think of what Ratchet would say in this situation. He sighed. It was painful to think of Ratchet, especially after what had happened on the Phoenix. The door suddenly opened to reveal Captain Qwark, hurrying to finish butting his boot on.

"Oh, Clank! I didn't see you there. A hero needs to be alert you know. Maybe I should see Helga...wait, no, never mind." He shuddered at the thought of Helga. "Anyway, how's Ratch...oh"

Qwark noticed that Clank had turned really sad at the mention of Ratchet's name. He'd forgotten about Ratchet's...accident.

"Anyway" said Qwark, trying to change the subject "what do you need?"

"I was hoping you could help me find out why Ratchet..." Clank paused "...passed away"

Qwark had so many things to do, but he could tell how sad Clank was about this. He decided to help

"Thank you Captain Qwark"

"Don't thank me Clank, it's what a hero has to do!"  
Clank slapped his head. Qwark's ego was almost unbearable.

"So where are we gonna start?" said Qwark.

"Well, Ratchet did say that things began to happen to him after he went to Earth. Maybe we should start there"

And they did. But they didn't notice the pale furred Lombax figure staring at them through Qwark's mirror...

Qwark's bright green ship tracked the previous flight path of the Aphelion. Clank had a determined but sad look on his face. What could have happened to his friend? Qwark just looked bored. He was a superhero! What was he doing here, wasting time on a backwater planet like this? The ship descended even more through the clouds towards the Aphelion's previous landing site. Clank pushed forward on the control stick as the ship landed when he suddenly looked up. He'd heard something. What was it? A whisper? There it was again. Someone was saying his name. Clank was positive it was coming from the cargo hold. He jumped off his seat and left Qwark to land the ship. He looked through the door. Again, he heard it

"Clank..."

The voice sounded so familiar. Who was calling him?

"Hello?" Clank said. The lights above him flickered slightly as he progressed further into the hold.

"Clank..."

Clank gazed into the corner. He was certain it was coming from there. He creeped over. It was coming from behind the crate. As Clank got closer, the voice began to get louder and be heard from all directions. Clank kept going towards the crate. His audio recpetors were going to overload. He grabbed the crate and pulled his away. He gasped. Ratchet was there, against the wall with his head down. He had a bloody metal spike in his hand and his chest still bore the wound that had killed him on the Phoenix. He slowly lifted his head up towards Clank. His eyes were closed, but he seemed to know where Clank was. Clank tried to call out to him, but he couldn't speak. Something was stopping him. Ratchet's eyes began to open slowly. Clank was feeling strange. He had never felt it before. Was it fear? Dread? Clank looked up as he heard a creaking above him. He looked back at Ratchet as the Lombax opened his mouth and opened his eyes fully.

"Clank" he said with a blank tone.

Ratchet's eyes were pure white. There were no green irises, no pupils, just a white emptiness. Clank couldn't believe what he was seeing. He blinked in disbelief, when suddenly, as he blinked, Ratchet was gone. There was no indication he was there in the first place. Clank stood there. Had Ratchet really been there?

"Clank, we've landed! Get your metal butt here now!" Qwark screamed from the cockpit. Clank turned to walk away, but was still gazing where Ratchet had been. Something was wrong...

The silver door on the side of the ship slid to the side as Qwark and Clank stepped out onto the ground. The computer had made a slight miscalculation and had landed them outside an old house. Clank gazed at it. Had Ratchet come here? If so, why? The weeds of the garden clogged the path as Qwark and Clank walked towards the door. Clank turned to face Qwark,

"Stay here" Clank felt he had to go in alone. He pushed on the wooden door. It creaked as it swung open. Clank had to admit, it was a very tidy house. Not even so much as a speck of dust had landed on the floor, the tables or the picture frames. Clank looked up. He felt that someone was watching him from somewhere. But that was silly. Ghosts or any other supernatural phenomenon simply did not exist. At least that's what logic told him.

Outside, Qwark was getting impatient. What was Clank doing in there? He had a date with a beautician in half an hour. What a waste of time. He sat down on a rock. He was bored. It was very cold on this planet. A chill had suddenly come over the house's garden. Qwark gasped as suddenly something grabbed his arm. He looked around. He was in the house! Clank whirled round.

"Qwark? I told you to wait outside!"

"I don't know what happened. Something pulled me in..."

Clank looked back at the stairs. He noticed something which made him gasp. A white tail, resting on the first step. Ratchet?

"Ratchet!"

Qwark looked up at this remark by Clank.

"What're you staring at?"

Clank looked at Qwark.

"What?"

He looked back at the stairs. As Qwark had implied, nothing was there. Clank was puzzled. Had he imagined it? He began to make his way up the stairs. Qwark was about to follow when Clank turned to face him.

"Stay here. I don't want you to get into any more trouble"

Qwark stopped. Why did he have to stay here? Clank carried on up the stairs and disappeared from view. Qwark turned away from the stairs and sat on the floor. He was so bored... Suddenly, he heard a noise coming from the living room. He stood up and walked towards the door. He opened it. Nothing was there. He sat down on the couch. He was about to flick the TV on when he felt a breeze coming from behind him. He spun round to be confronted with a black shape making it's way down from the corner of the roof. Qwark froze as the shape got closer. It suddenly began to take on a human form. A head and arms began to form. Qwark's face morphed into an expression of terror as suddenly, the face of the figure was suddenly revealed as the hair blew away. The eyes opened and the eyes rolled into place. The figure began to croak loudly as it came close to almost touching his face. Qwark screamed as the black shape took over his vision.

Clank saw one of the bedroom doors ajar slightly. He peered round the corner. A perfect bedroom. Just like the rest of the house. The bed was clean, the floor was clean. Time hadn't aged the house at all. Clank felt sad. This house reminded him of Ratchet so much. Clank wasn't sure he could feel emotions this strongly. If he could cry, he probably would've by now. Clank stopped noticed something round the corner of the bed. He crouched down as he looked.

"Ratchet?"

Ratchet was sitting against the wall. He had his arms wrapped around him as well as his tail. His chest was still bloody. It had left a pool of blood on the floor. The metal spike that had killed him was in his arms as he shivered. His head was still down as Clank tried to make him look.

"Ratchet! Ratchet, answer me!"

Ratchet was motionless. He didn't so much as twitch at Clank's attempts for him to respond. Clank looked away from Ratchet as he heard a croaking behind him.

"She's gonna come for you..."

Clank turned back. Had Ratchet spoken to him?

"Ratchet, please. What is it?"

"It's taken Sasha...it's taken Al...and..."

Clank saw a tear from Ratchet's eye fall to the floor

"...it's taken me"

Suddenly Clank felt an arm on his shoulder. It pulled him round and he was suddenly back near the door of the house. It was night-time outside. How was that possible? It was morning when they had entered the house. Could the curse be real? Clank checked for Qwark. Where was he? He'd probably run off again. After all a "superhero" had things to do. Clank froze as he noticed a black shape in the mirror. A flash of pale white skin showed as the shadow faded. Creaking was coming from above him. The little robot was afraid. It was real...He gasped as he noticed a white hand grab the top step of the stairs. Another arm came round the corner and grabbed the next step. The figure was coming down to him. It was croaking quite loudly, it's face covered by long black hair. Clank backed away from the stairs and reached for the door. It was jammed! He was trapped! The figure got closer as the black hair parted to reveal Kayako Saeki. She was real. Ratchet was right all along. Clank cried out for help, for anybody to come and get him out, but no-one heard him. He looked back towards the door, still trying to open it. He looked back and gasped. Kayako was no longer there. In her place was Ratchet, with his bloody chest, pale fur and croaking death rattle. Ratchet was going to kill him? He crawled ever further towards Clank. Clank shut his eyes. It was pointless trying to run away. Suddenly, he heard a voice.

"Clank..."

It was Ratchet's voice! But the Ratchet in front of him hadn't stopped croaking.

"Clank...kill me...it's your only chance...kill me"

Clank couldn't make sense of it all. Kill Ratchet? He noticed the metal spike on the floor. Still bloody, still sharp.

"Clank, please...do it now..."  
The robot didn't know what to do. Ratchet had given him advice before but this was too difficult.

"Clank!"

Clank finally gave into the voices and plunged the spike into Ratchet's chest. The Lombax froze. He stumbled. He fell backwards onto the floor. His fur had become it's normal shade of gold. His eyes were normal again and the only wound he had was the fresh one he had gotten from Clank. Clank rushed over to his friend. He held the Lombax in his arms.

"Clank...you did it...you ended it"

"Ratchet, I didn't end anything. Don't move, I'll get a doct..."

"No"

Rathet grabbed Clank's arm

"Leave me...and get out of here"

"Ratchet...I can't"

"Please, before she comes back...cough cough"

Ratchet coughed up some blood.

"Ratchet!"

"Clank...you did great..."

The Lombax's body began to glow with tiny spots of green light. The lights gathered where Ratchet's heart was. There was a bright flash. Ratchet was gone. Clank had been wrong. He'd ended Ratchet's involvment with the curse. He'd been set free. But that still didn't change the sadness Clank felt. Now Ratchet was gone for good. He would never see the Lombax again...Suddenly a croaking was heard and Clank looked up. Kayako was still on the stairs, crawling towards him. Clank thought he might has well give up now. She would always be there, crawling towards him, coming to claim him. She jerked her neck as her face almost touched his. Suddenly, she stopped. Kayako continued to stare at Clank. She just waited there staring at him. Clank stared into her undead, cold eyes as a bright flash suddenly clouded his vision.

Clank opened his eyes. Wherever he was, he certainly wasn't in the house anymore. Was he dead? No, he could could still function properly. So where was he? He sat up. A little boy was staring at him. He was holding a cat and was sat down. The boy just sat there, looking. Clank was about to speak when the boy spoke first.

"You have saved your friend from the curse. He is free..."

The boy's voice was almost disembodied. Clank stayed still as the boy continued.

"I can make it as it was before, before the house, before the curse...would you like that Clank?"

Clank, astounded by how the boy knew his name, answered

"Y..Yes"

"But know this. You will still be with the Zoni. You may not see him for a long time. And Ratchet will not forget his experience. He became one with the curse, and now, must live with it..."

Clank knew that Ratchet would be very disturbed and traumatised by the recent events, but everyone would be OK again. Should he agree?

"Yes, please do it"

"Very well..."

The boy faded from view as Clank's visions turned white again. He knew he may not see Ratchet for a while, but now he knew he had helped his friend survive.

EPILOGUE

_When someone dies from a state of rage_

_That emotion gathers in the place of death_

_All who cross it's path will be consumed by it's fury_

_Ju-On_


	4. THE GRUDGE 2: Teaser

"No stay back!" Ratchet cried. But it was no use. She crawled towards him relentless in her goal to kill him. She croaked her death rattle once again as she grabbed Ratchet's leg. He stumbled and fell backwards onto the floor. Kayako jerked her neck with a horrible cracking sound as she crawled up his body until she was almost touching his face. Ratchet shut his eyes and waited for the inevitable. After all this running, she had caught him. But nothing happened. He slowly opened one eye. She was gone. He breathed a huge sigh of relief. He turned his head towards Clank.

"She's gone...that was close huh?" he laughed at Clank. Clank had an expression of horror on his face as he raised a hand towards Ratchet. He was pointing to above Ratchet's head. The Lombax's expression changed to sheer dread as he heard a croaking from above him. Ratchet slowly lifted his head towards the ceiling.

**THE GRUDGE 2: KAYAKO'S REVENGE**

**Chapter 1: The Dream**

**COMING SOON**


End file.
